Guerrilla Fruit Grafting Blooms in San Francisco Neighborhoods

A Barra/Flickr

Helping to combat hunger in a community could be as easy as adding fruit-bearing branches to ornamental trees. At least that’s part of what drives the Guerrilla Grafter group, based out of San Francisco.

The Guerrilla Grafters are a coalition of amateur horticulturists who span the city adding fruit-blossoming branches to public trees, which will later allow public access to fresh fruit. The group says that the practice – which includes fitting a branch to the live trunk and stabilizing it so the two can grow as one – does not harm the trees.

Their argument: why not make trees that are already aesthetically pleasing, fruitful to any passerby? While San Francisco may not grow fruit trees in the city due to the worry of rot and pests, cities like Seville, Spain are known for their practice of planting public, fruit-bearing trees as part of the urban landscape.

San Francisco’s Public Works Department has toldSan Francisco Examiner and other news outlets that the city considers the grafting a form of vandalism. For their part, Guerrilla Grafters maintain tree stewards who oversee each tree, collect fruit, and watch for disease.

A California-native, Jasmine Touton - who is also a Project Specialist at Campaign Consultation Inc. - spent much of her time growing up outdoors and under water. She's passionate about finding and lifting up innovative ways we can all work to preserve and protect the great outdoors for future generations. Read more.